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HMNZS OTAGO in the Southern Ocean.

Media Release

8 December 2010

HMNZS OTAGO AND WELLINGTON AT CAMPBELL ISLAND

After a rough 36 hour passage from Bluff the Offshore Patrol Vessels OTAGO and WELLINGTON are now at anchor in Perseverance Habour, Campbell Island.

Work to transfer personnel and their stores to Campbell Island has begun. The 50 Degrees South Expedition will spend three months on the island studying its unique ecology and its recovery since rats were eradicated. More than 250 crates of stores for the expedition will be transferred from the ships over the next 24 hours.

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HMNZS WELLINGTON in Perseverance Habour, Campbell Island

While at Campbell Island, their excellencies, the Governor General Sir Anand Satyanand and Lady Susan Satyanand went ashore, along with three high-school students sponsored by the Royal Society of New Zealand.

This is the first time the Navy's two newest ships have visited the remote sub-Antarctic Islands. The Navy's mission during this period includes trials to prove their capability to operate in the southern waters. During the passage OTAGO suffered an electronic fault on one of her engines. Work by engineers onboard have effected temporary repairs and both engines are again available. The ship will return to Auckland to effect a permanent solution to the fault, with WELLINGTON remaining in the region in support of the Department of Conservation and conduct visits to the Auckland Islands and The Snares.

ENDS

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